Canucks fans, I just want you to know the playoff run isn’t over yet so please put that jersey back on, and yes put that car flag on your car again. Although the Canucks are down 0-3 in the series and look like a bunch of lost pee-wee kids in their first hockey game together, it isn’t over yet, but I wouldn’t hold your breath as well. When all is said and done, these playoffs will be over and a plan will be put into place to revamp this broken team. If and when these playoffs end, there will be lessons to learn from this season, I will share a few with you that in my opinion will be lessons learned moving forward to next season.
Despite his play as a Canuck player, David Booth is talented and by judging from his twitter account, a talented hunter as well. Believe this; he did score 31 goals in a season once, but only once. But once you hit the NHL no talent will take you anywhere if you’re injured all the time. No player serves any use from the press box while eating up 4+ million dollars in cap space. A team like the Canucks could use that 4 million dollars for a possible center/defenseman that they so desperately needed in the season.
Something that the Canucks have possibly forgot in the playoffs is goal scoring. The Canucks have managed to score 5 goals in this series alone while the opposition has scored 11 goals in 3 games. Since the 2011 cup finals, the Canucks have had a lack of goal scoring in the playoffs, scoring only 8 goals in 5 games last season against the Los Angeles Kings and scoring only 7 goals against the Boston Bruins in the Cup Finals in 2011. Moral Victories are always great, shots are even better, but this is now the playoffs, and moral victories mean nothing. If you want to win, you have to score goals and battle hard and play with a lot of heart, something that the Canucks have trouble doing. The amount of goals scored since the Cup Finals in 2011 is simply not enough to compete in this league and something will have to change drastically. Don’t get me wrong, the talent is there, but the big question is where?
The Canucks have spoon fed the San Jose Sharks with penalties in this series…and dumb ones. San Jose had the seventh best power play during the regular season at 20%. One of the reasons why they were so dominant at the start of the season and finished where they did. But then again, was that a secret stat to the Canucks that they didn’t know, or was it obvious public knowledge? I think it’s the latter. The Canucks and my grandma were well aware of San Jose’s power play and there powerful offensive strength so why must the Canucks take dumb penalties, specifically Henrik Sedin, the captain? Don’t get me wrong, the Canucks have a great penalty kill, but they’ve allowed four power-play goals against in the series, and it has proved to be the difference maker.
And something for Canucks Nation, I’ll make this abundantly clear! Goaltending isn’t the issue in this series, although Schneider got lit up like a Christmas tree in Game 3 and let in 5 goals, Roberto Luongo was the one who kept the Canucks in Game’s 1 and 2 and gave them a chance to win the game! It was the defense and offense in front of him who did completely nothing to help him! The story of the series isn’t goaltending, it’s why the Vancouver Canucks can’t score and figure out Niemi?
Game 4 begins tonight, it’s either the end of the road for one team or a setback for the other, can the Sharks sweep the Canucks who were once back to back president’s trophy winners or can the Canucks claw back into this series? Stay tuned and find out!
Kevin Cawthra
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